gener8tor is an American

startup accelerator Startup accelerators, also known as seed accelerators, are fixed-term, cohort-based programs, that include mentorship and educational components, and (sometimes) culminate in a public pitch event or demo day. While traditional business incubato ...

that operates in several US cities, including

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, and

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

. Since its inception, gener8tor has invested in 180 companies, which have gone on to raise more than $1 billion in total follow-on financing.

Program

gener8tor offers $20,000 in exchange for 6-7% of equity and another $80,000 in the form of an uncapped

convertible note In finance, a convertible bond, convertible note, or convertible debt (or a convertible debenture if it has a maturity of greater than 10 years) is a type of bond that the holder can convert into a specified number of shares of common stock in t ...

. gener8tor takes no board seats, no preferred shares, and no liquidation preferences. Each class happens in a different city, with

in the

Spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a he ...

in the Summer, and

during the Fall. Each class lasts about 3 months. gener8tor invests in high-growth startups, including software, IT, web, SaaS, e-commerce and hardware.

Acceptance

In its Madison 2017 class, gener8tor accepted 5 out of 691 companies.

History

gener8tor's first fund was backed by Dan Armbrust, founder of Granite Microsystems, a

Mequon, Wisconsin Mequon () is the most populous city in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 25,142 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on Lake Michigan's western shore with significant commercial developments along Int ...

equipment manufacturer, and Dan Bader, president and CEO of Bader Philanthropies. gener8tor is a sponsor for

Front Row Motorsports Front Row Motorsports (FRM) is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. The team began running part-time in 2004 as Means-Jenkins Motorsports under a part ...

driver

Todd Gilliland Todd Jeremey Gilliland (born May 15, 2000) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 34 Ford Mustang (seventh generation), Ford Mustang Dark Horse for Front Row Motorsports ...

in the

NASCAR Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR), the most prestigious stock car racing series in the United States. The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, ...

Gener8tor Fund II

CSA Partners Venture Management, a venture capital fund backed by

Chris Abele Christopher Seton Abele (born January 28, 1967) is an American businessman and Democratic Party politician. He served as the 6th Milwaukee County Executive from 2011 to 2020. Abele is the son of American businessman John Abele, the co-founder o ...

County Executive, and former president and CEO of the

Argosy Foundation The Argosy Foundation, founded in 1997, is currently based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was formerly known as the Abele Family Charitable Trust. History The foundation was established in 1995 with a $9 million endowment from John Abele. In 2002, i ...

, Wisconsin Investment Partners, and other individual investors contributed 2.1 million dollars to "Gener8tor Fund II". The funds are for operations and investments of the gener8tor companies.

References

External links

* http://www.gener8tor.com/ * https://www.gBETAstartups.com * https://www.onrampconference.com/ * https://www.NMotion.co/ * http://www.seed-db.com/accelerators/view?acceleratorid=263012 {{Venture capital firms Financial services companies established in 2012 Organizations based in Milwaukee Technology companies established in 2012 2012 establishments in Wisconsin Venture capital firms of the United States Organizations based in Madison, Wisconsin Startup accelerators Economy of Wisconsin